Banner calling for the UAE to free a human rights activist flown over the Etihad before Abu Dhabi-backed Man City’s top-table clash
Amnesty International organized a plane flight over the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon ahead of the kick-off of the Premier League match between Manchester City and Liverpool to draw attention to the plight of a human rights activist currently imprisoned in the United Arab Emirates.
A banner reading ‘UAE – Free Ahmed Mansoor’ floated behind a low-flying plane as players walked onto the pitch on the ground named after an Emirati airline, in an attempt to send a message to the club’s owners in Abu Dhabi.
Mansoor – an Emirati-born blogger and activist – has been in solitary confinement for almost seven years after being arrested in 2010 for using social media to ‘threaten public order’ and given a 10-year prison sentence.
Human Rights Watch has previously expressed concern over allegations that Mansoor was tortured during his captivity, as alleged in the activist’s private letters.
In October, Amnesty issued a rallying cry calling for the freedom of Mansoor – as well as other ‘dissidents’ currently imprisoned under similar legislation – ahead of COP28.
Before Saturday’s match, a banner reading ‘UAE – Free Ahmed Mansoor’ was flown over the Etihad
The packed stadium could have seen the plane before the kick-off between Man City and Liverpool at 12.30pm
The human rights activist has probably been held in solitary confinement since 2017
In January 2023, the UAE ranked 127th out of 165 countries in the Cato Institute’s annual Human Freedom Index, which rates citizens’ human freedom based on freedom of expression, assembly and the legal system, among others.
Since its takeover in 2008, Man City has been owned by the Abu Dhabi Group, an investment portfolio of the capital’s royal family, and is led by Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE’s Vice President and Deputy Prime Minister, as well as Minister of Foreign Affairs. the presidential court of the Gulf state.
During Saturday’s match, the home crowd repeatedly chanted the name ‘Sheikh Mansour’ in honor of the man they believe is largely responsible for ushering in Man City’s current era of brilliant success.
The Etihad is far from the first English ground to be targeted by those seeking to raise awareness of victims of alleged human rights abuses, with St James’ Park last season being the scene of a protest targeting the Saudi-backed ownership of Newcastle.
A banner reading ‘Free All Saudi Prisoners’ flew over the Tyneside ground during last season’s Premier League match with Arsenal, organized by the SANAD organization – short for Standing Against Nefarious and Arbitrary Detentions.
The body says it is a human rights organization, officially registered in Britain, and aims to “defend political and civil rights in Saudi Arabia.”
The SANAD organization says it “monitors human rights violations and exposes them to human rights bodies and media, civil and political institutions around the world.”
In addition to the banner at the Etihad, Amnesty published a message on X (formerly Twitter) with an accompanying call to arms.
The message read: Ahmed Mansoor is a loving husband, father of four sons, poet and activist. He was jailed for calling for human rights reform in the UAE and has been in solitary confinement ever since.
“Call on the UAE Embassy in Britain to free Ahmed.”
In a statement shared by the organization to Mail Sport, Sacha Deshmukh, Chief Executive of Amnesty International UK, said: ‘The UAE has undermined its global reputation through Manchester City, while at the same time Ahmed Mansoor and others have been jailed simply for their peaceful human rights. activism.
Abu Dhabi Group’s takeover of Man City in 2008 ushered in Emirati-backed ownership under the leadership of the investment group’s owner, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed bin Al Nahyan
At the end of the 2022-2023 season, a plane carrying the ‘Free All Saudi Prisoners’ banner flew over St James’ Park
“Manchester City’s tremendous success under Pep Guardiola is in large part due to the financing of the Emirates, and we call on City fans to join us in this campaign to free Ahmed.
‘Today’s plane stunt is a way of saying ‘look up from the pitch and see the bigger picture – a huge injustice has happened, and Man City’s owners are the ones who can right this injustice.’
The statement added that they had left notes among the items in the club shop in an attempt to further spread the message.
“The least we Mancunians can do for Ahmed is shout his name loud and clear for Sheikh Mansour to hear,” the report continued. ‘In addition to today’s banner and plane protest, three of our group recently visited the Man City store in the city center and spent half an hour sifting through merchandise and putting notes into garment bags, drink bottles and the covers on pom-pom hats.
“We hope that our ‘gifts’ will be found by many fans in the coming weeks and that they will take a few minutes to read the notes and learn more about the human rights situation in the UAE – information that the owners of their team would rather not have known.’